Nasa turns to private sector for next moon mission

Three North East firms make list of UK's fastest growing companies

A cult fashion firm, a housebuilder and a luxury bathroom business from the North East have ensured the region makes a strong showing in a list of the country’s fastest growing companies.

The 22nd annual Sunday Times Virgin Atlantic Fast Track 100 league table will be published this weekend, ranking Britain’s private companies with the fastest-growing sales.

Three companies headquartered in the North East have made this year’s list, compared to five last year, include one new entrant – and their combined sales have grown by an average of 77% a year over three years to a total of £142.1m. Together they employ 420 people.

Northumberland housebuilder Cussins, run by father-and-son team Peter and Jabin Cussins, makes a return to the list at number 46.

The Alnwick firm has won backing from the Duke of Northumberland’s business arm which bought a 35% stake for an undisclosed sum. It has seen annual sales growth of 71% over the last three years and currently has sales of £33m, employing 88 staff.

Chief executive Jabin Cussins said:

We’ve managed to bring together a great team who are highly committed to delivering first class developments, being included in the FastTrack Ranking once again is a remarkable achievement and tribute to their hard work and dedication.

Cussins continues to experience very high demand for our homes and has some very exciting projects in the pipeline. Having such a capable team at all levels and with strong support from The Northumberland Estates and Lloyds Bank, the future prospects for the business are very promising.

Newcastle retailer END – which operates a successful online business as well as stores in Newcastle and London – appears in the list for the third year running, at number 69.

It has the highest operating profits on the league table at £23m. Founded as a single shop in Newcastle in 2005, it now ships up to 6,000 packages a day, with sales up 56% a year, hitting £101.1m in 2018, 70% of which were generated overseas.

The END clothing store in Newcastle (Image: gallery)

8:59Jonathon Manning

Former Autonomy CEO Mike Lynch charged with fraud in US

The former CEO of UK software company Autonomy has been charged with fraud over the sale of the company to Hewlett-Packard.

Mike Lynch has been charged with 14 counts of conspiracy and fraud and could face 20 years in prison.

Stephen Chamberlain, the company’s former vice president for finance has also been charged.

Autonomy was acquired by Hewlett-Packard in 2011 for $11bn.

The indictment alleges that the duo engaged in a scheme to defraud purchasers and sellers of Autonomy securities about the true performance of Autonomy’s business, its financial condition and prospects for growth.

It is claimed the pair issued statement which artificially inflated the company’s performance between 2009 and 2011.

US Hygiene giant Ecolab snaps up UK's Bioquell for £141m

A British firm that decontaminates hospitals and research labs is to be sold to US hygiene giant Ecolab for almost £141m.

Hampshire’s Bioquell has accepted an offer of 590p per share in the company.

Ecolab is a leading provider of water, hygiene and energy technologies and services. It is currently valued at more than $40bn (£31.3bn) and is part of the S&P 500 index.Microsoft founder Bill Gates owns around 12% of the company after snapping up more stock in March.The acquisition of Bioquell marks the latest in a string of takeovers by Ecolab under chief executive Doug Baker.Elizabeth Simermeyer, executive vice president for life sciences at Ecolab, said:

With Bioquell’s suite of solutions and services, Ecolab will offer one of the most comprehensive portfolios of cleaning and decontamination solutions for pharmaceutical and healthcare environments.

Bioquell shares jumped as much as 37% in early trading on Friday following the acceptance of the offer.

An information screen at the London Stock Exchange

8:37KEY EVENT

Tributes paid to North East businessman and philanthropist Nas Khan

Tributes have been paid to one of the region’s best known businessmen, who has died just weeks after selling his company.

Nas Khan was managing director of Jennings Motor Group, which had a presence throughout the North East, until he sold the business in September.

Having arrived in Britain from Pakistan at the age of 14 unable to speak English, he worked his way up through the company and bought it in a management buyout in 2005.

As well as his business success - with the company employing more than 500 people until it was sold to national player Lookers - Mr Khan was well known for his charity work, supporting the Great North Air Ambulance, the Salvation Army and his own Emaan Foundation, which was dedicated to building a village in Pakistan for a community devastated by earthquakes in 1999 and floods in 2010.

His business and charitable work saw him appointed an OBE in 2017 and he also received an honorary doctorate from Teesside University the same year. He was named Teesside Business Executive of the Year in 2015 and was singled out by the global Ford Motor Company with its Salute to Dealers award.

Tributes to Mr Khan have been led by James Ramsbotham, chief executive of the North East England Chamber of Commerce, who said:

He was such a great role model, someone who arrived here not able to speak the language, but who through sheer hard work achieved so much and helped so many people in so many ways.

He was always a true gentlemen in every way.

Teesside University also paid tribute, saying:

He was an inspirational figure in the North East who made a huge contribution through his business achievements and charity work. He will be missed by all who knew him at Teesside University.

Nas Khan - MD of the Jennings Motor Group (Image: Evening Gazette)

8:30Jonathon Manning

National developer could buy historic Gibson Street Baths in Newcastle

The Byker baths – one of the oldest public bath houses in England – went back on the market for a third time in January after plans for a community group to turn the building into a cultural hub collapsed.

Now it has emerged that the first bit of progress in more than two years is being made on a future for the building, following news that a developer has expressed an interest in the 101-year-old building.

An announcement could be made early in the new year revealing how it might be used in the future.

A council spokesman said:

Gibson Street Baths was put on the market earlier this year and received a number of expressions of interest. This was after we went through a lengthy process, and strenuous efforts, to try and transfer it to a local community organisation.

We are now working with a developer who is carrying out structural surveys and other checks. We will then enter into a legal process and hope to make an announcement early next year.

The building was originally put up for auction by the council in 2016 as part of moves to sell off empty properties and help tackle budget cuts.

That process was halted when a community campaign was laun­­ched to save the 101-year-old building, giving groups the chance to buy the building.

Campaigners with Save Gibson Street Baths for People not Developers, the group which succeeded in getting the building listed as an Asset of Community Value, had been given several months to put together a business and funding plan, and wanted to turn it into a social enterprise hotel, cafe, bar and community space.

The project, however, did not come to fruition, prompting the council to once more inviting offers for the landmark building, with property agents Lambert Smith Hampton marketing it.

The council’s planning department says it wants to see the building restored and is flexible about future uses, saying the property is potentially suited to offices, residential, care home, health and leisure uses, although any development proposals must take into account the Grade II-listing.

General View of the old Gibson Street Baths which are on the corner of Gibson Street and New Bridge Street (Image: Newcastle Chronicle)

8:24Jonathon Manning

FTSE and pound update

The FTSE-100 index opened at 7038.95.

The pound at 8am was 1.2777 dollars compared to 1.2789 dollars at the previous close.

The euro at 8am was 0.8909 pounds compared to 0.8898 pounds at the previous close.

8:17KEY EVENT

'It's time we got what we paid for' - Transport watchdog reacts to fare hike

The announcement that rail fares will increase by 3.1% in January has been met with harsh criticisms from transport watchdog’s and union leaders.

The price hike - the largest since 2013 - will see some commuters pay an additional £100 per year.

Speaking in London Anthony Smith, CEO of independent watchdog Transport Focus, called for a fare freeze to help commuters.

He said:

The rail industry gets £10bn a year from rail passengers, huge amounts of money from tax payers, it’s about time we got what we paid for.

Passengers want a reliable railway, they want a better value for money railway, and they shouldn’t have to wait any longer for that.

Some passengers will have memories of the timetable crisis in the summer, we’ve got ongoing very patchy performance, all this is causing problems so it’s a very mixed picture but people are still waiting too long for reliable railway.

A fare freeze would be a good New Year’s present. In the absence of that, better value for money railways so passengers can feel they’re getting value for money would be a good step in the right direction.

Mike Cash, general secretary of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union, said that commuters in the UK would now be paying “the highest fares in Europe on our rammed-out and unreliable services”.

Alex Hayman, managing director of public markets at consumer group Which?, said:

If the rail system is going to start working for passengers, not just train companies, then value for money needs to be a key part of the upcoming Government review and passengers must receive automatic compensation for delays and cancellations.

Passengers boarding a London North Eastern Railway train (Image: PA)

8:10KEY EVENT

Rail fares to jump by 3.1%

Britain’s rail fares are set to increase by 3.1% next year, the rail industry has announced.

The annual fair rises, which come into effect on January 2, will be the largest rise since 2013.

The price hike means many long distance commuters will see their annual travel costs increase by more than £100.

Nobody wants to pay more to travel, especially those who experienced significant disruption earlier this year.

Money from fares is underpinning the improvements to the railway that passengers want and which ultimately help boost the wider economy.

That means more seats, extra services and better connections right across the country.

There has been calls for a price freeze on rail fares following the chaos caused by the introduction of new timetables in May. Hundreds of journeys were cancelled leaving some areas of the country with the bare minimum of rail transport.

Fewer than half (45%) of passengers are satisfied with the value for money of train tickets, according to a survey by watchdog Transport Focus.